Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Flint Reporting Project Update

The Flint Reporting Project has taken in $130 in donations since the fundraising campaign began last week. Thanks to Joe, Lori, Anne and Keith for the generous donations. There's still a long way to go to hit the $5,000 goal by July 1, but it's not a bad start, especially when you compare it to the fundraising efforts of Senator John Ensign. The Nevada politician's campaign raised just $50 from a single contributor in the first quarter of this year, according to Federal Election Commission reports. That means Flint Expatriates is raising more money than a U.S. senator!

Okay, this is a little unfair given that Ensign has a few problems that might be constraining his ability to raise money. TPM reports:

The Justice Department is currently investigating the aftermath of Ensign's affair with the wife of a top aide, to determine whether the senator broke lobbying rules or other laws in trying to set up the aide, Doug Hampton, with a lobbying job, and find clients for him. A payment of almost $100,000 from Ensign's parents to the Hamptons is also reportedly a focus of the inquiry.

I'm not trying to pick on Sen. Ensign, but he may help me come up with a new fundraising slogan. Originally, my stated goal was to generate "more profits than G.M. and AutoWorld combined." Given G.M.'s encouraging performance of late, that goal is probably out of reach. Nick Bunkley of The New York Timesreports:

Meanwhile, General Motors said it had finished repaying the $8.2 billion — with interest — it owed the American and Canadian governments, and it introduced television commercials telling consumers the money had been paid back.

“The government and the taxpayers made a terrific investment and it’s going to pay off big time,” G.M.’s chief executive, Edward E. Whitacre Jr., said during a visit to an assembly plant in Kansas City, Kan., where he announced the repayment in front of an American flag.

Mr. Whitacre was traveling to Washington for the first time as G.M.’s chief executive later Wednesday, and he planned to meet with members of Congress and the Treasury secretary, Timothy F. Geithner, among others. (A G.M. spokesman, Tom Wilkinson, said Mr. Whitacre had chartered a plane at his own expense because of a tight travel schedule.)

“We are encouraged that G.M. has repaid its debt well ahead of schedule and confident that the company is on a strong path to viability,” Mr. Geithner said in a statement. “This continued progress is a positive sign for our auto investment — not only more funds recovered for the taxpayer but also countless jobs saved and the successful stabilization of a vital industry for our country.”

Thanks for commenting. You might enjoy my book about Flint called "Teardown: Memoir of a Vanishing City," a Michigan Notable Book for 2014 and a finalist for the 33rd Annual Northern California Book Award for Creative NonFiction. Filmmaker Michael Moore described Teardown as "a brilliant chronicle of the Mad Maxization of a once-great American city." More information about Teardown is available at www.teardownbook.com.

"Teardown: Memoir of a Vanishing City" by Gordon Young

An intimate, indepth exploration of the past, present, and future of Flint, Michigan. Essential reading for anyone trying to understand why bad things — like the Flint Water Crisis — keep happening to Flint.

Support Flint Expatriates

If you'd like to help offset the operating costs of Flint Expatriates, feel free to donate any amount, however small. (We're talking $1-$5 here.) The goal is extremely modest — more profits than AutoWorld!

If Paypal isn't an option for you, simply email me at the Flint Expatriates World Headquarters, also known as my living room, and I'll provide a mailing address: gyoung(at)flintexpats(dot)com.

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"I grew up on the Eastside and recall the unexplained pride I felt when the 3:30 Buick factory whistle blew and the roughly dressed workers poured out of the General Motors labyrinth swinging their lunch pails. Some were headed for home and some for the corner bar, but all with the determined step of an army after a battle won. I somehow felt as if I were a part of this giant assembly line and the city it fed."